Systems and Methods for Configuring Air Interfaces with Low Overhead

ABSTRACT

It is possible to reduce overhead when dynamically establishing an air interface configuration by communicating a modification instruction along with an index associated with a predefine air interface configuration. The modification instruction identifies a modification to one or more parameters of the predefined air interface configuration associated with the index. Together, the index and the modification indication specify a modified air interface configuration that is different than any of the candidate air interface configurations predefined for the network. The modification instruction allows networks to achieve similar degrees of flexibility while using substantially fewer predefined air interface configurations, which in turn permits the index associated with the selected air interface configuration to be signaled using fewer bits.

This patent application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.15/878,205 filed on Jan. 23, 2018 and entitled “Systems and Methods forConfiguring Air Interfaces with Low Overhead,” which is a continuationof U.S. application Ser. No. 15/093,944 filed on Apr. 8, 2016 andentitled “Systems and Methods for Configuring Air Interfaces with LowOverhead,” which claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application No.62/250,956, filed on Nov. 4, 2015 and entitled “Systems and Methods forConfiguring Air Interfaces with Low Overhead,” both of which are herebyincorporated by reference herein as if reproduced in their entireties.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to wireless communications, and, inparticular embodiments, to systems and methods for configuring airinterfaces with low overhead.

BACKGROUND

Next-generation wireless networks will need to support diverse traffictypes (e.g., voice, data, mobile-gaming), while providing highthroughput rates over various, oftentimes changing, channel conditions.To achieve this, network devices may need to have the capability todynamically establish different air interface configurations in anefficient manner. Accordingly, techniques for efficiently configuringair interfaces in wireless networks are desired.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Technical advantages are generally achieved by embodiments of thisdisclosure which describe systems and methods for configuring airinterfaces with low overhead.

In accordance with an embodiment, a method for reducing overhead duringair interface configuration is provided. In this example, the methodincludes sending an index and a modification instruction to wirelessdevice. The index is associated with a first one of a plurality ofpredefined air interface configurations, and the modificationinstruction indicates a modification of one or more parameters of thefirst predefined air interface configuration to produce a modified airinterface configuration. The index and the modification instructioninstruct the wireless device to establish the modified air interfaceconfiguration without first establishing the predefined air interfaceconfiguration. An apparatus for performing this method is also provided.

In accordance with another embodiment, yet another method for reducingoverhead during air interface configuration is provided. In thisexample, the method includes receiving an index and a modificationinstruction from a network device at a wireless device. The index isassociated with a first one of a plurality of predefined air interfaceconfigurations, and the modification instruction indicates amodification of one or more parameters of the first predefined airinterface configuration to produce a modified air interfaceconfiguration. The method further includes establishing the modified airinterface configuration based on the index and the modificationinstruction without first establishing the predefined air interfaceconfiguration. An apparatus for performing this method is also provided.

In accordance with another embodiment, yet another method for reducingoverhead during air interface configuration is provided. In thisexample, the method includes sending indices of a plurality ofpredefined air interface configurations to a wireless device, andreceiving a specific one of the indices from the wireless device. Thespecific index identifies one of the plurality of predefined airinterface configurations selected by the wireless device. An apparatusfor performing this method is also provided.

In accordance with another embodiment, yet another method for reducingoverhead during air interface configuration is provided. In thisexample, the method includes receiving indices of a plurality ofpredefined air interface configurations from a network device at awireless device, and selecting one of the plurality of predefined airinterface configurations. The selected predefined air interfaceconfiguration is associated with a specific one of the indices. Themethod further includes sending the specific index to the networkdevice. An apparatus for performing this method is also provided.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

For a more complete understanding of the present invention, and theadvantages thereof, reference is now made to the following descriptionstaken in conjunction with the accompanying drawing, in which:

FIG. 1 is a diagram of an embodiment wireless network;

FIG. 2 is a diagram of an embodiment communications sequence forestablishing an air interface configuration;

FIG. 3 is a flowchart of an embodiment method for dynamicallyestablishing an air interface configuration;

FIG. 4 is a flowchart of another embodiment method for dynamicallyestablishing an air interface configuration;

FIG. 5 is a diagram of another embodiment communications sequence forestablishing an air interface configuration;

FIG. 6 is a flowchart of yet another embodiment method for dynamicallyestablishing an air interface configuration;

FIG. 7 is a flowchart of yet another embodiment method for dynamicallyestablishing an air interface configuration;

FIG. 8 is a diagram of yet another embodiment communications sequencefor establishing an air interface configuration;

FIG. 9 is a flowchart of yet another embodiment method for dynamicallyestablishing an air interface configuration;

FIG. 10 is a flowchart of yet another embodiment method for dynamicallyestablishing an air interface configuration;

FIG. 11 is a diagram of embodiment control signaling messages;

FIG. 12 is a diagram of an embodiment control signaling message;

FIG. 13 is a diagram of an embodiment processing system; and

FIG. 14 is a diagram of an embodiment transceiver.

Corresponding numerals and symbols in the different figures generallyrefer to corresponding parts unless otherwise indicated. The figures aredrawn to clearly illustrate the relevant aspects of the embodiments andare not necessarily drawn to scale.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF ILLUSTRATIVE EMBODIMENTS

The making and using of embodiments of this disclosure are discussed indetail below. It should be appreciated, however, that the presentinvention provides many applicable inventive concepts that can beembodied in a wide variety of specific contexts. The specificembodiments discussed are merely illustrative of specific ways to makeand use the invention, and do not limit the scope of the invention.

Network devices may instruct wireless devices to dynamically configurean air interface based on a subset of parameters. The subset ofparameters used to configure an air interface are collectively referredto as the “air interface configuration,” and may include physical layerparameters, a waveform, a transmission mode, an access scheme, are-transmission scheme, or a combination thereof. One approach todynamically configuring an air interface is to communicate an indexassociated with a predefined air interface configuration to a mobiledevice via control signaling. More specifically, a pool of candidate airinterface configurations are predefined for a network such that theparameters specified by each of the candidate air interfaceconfigurations are known by network devices in the network and wirelessdevices that access the network. Each of the candidate air interfaceconfigurations is associated with a different index. The parameters andindex associations of the candidate air interface configurations may bestored in a wireless device by the manufacturer. Alternatively, thewireless device may learn the parameters and index associations ofcandidate air interface configurations predefined for a network during aprevious communication session between the wireless device and thenetwork or from a third party, e.g., received from another wirelessdevice, downloaded from a discovery server. The amount of controlsignaling overhead required to support dynamic air interfaceconfiguration when using the aforementioned approach is largelydependent on how many candidate air interface configurations arepredefined for the network. A larger pool of candidate air interfaceconfigurations will require a larger range of indices, therebyincreasing the number of bits needed to signal the index.

Aspects of this disclosure reduce the amount of overhead required todynamically establish an air interface configuration by communicating amodification instruction along with the index. The modificationinstruction identifies a modification to one or more parameters of thepredefined air interface configuration associated with the index.Together, the index and the modification indication specify a modifiedair interface configuration that is different than any of the candidateair interface configurations predefined for the network. Bycommunicating the modified air interface instruction along with theindex, a network device instructs the wireless device to establish themodified air interface configuration without first establishing thepredefined air interface configuration. As used herein, a predefined airinterface configuration is “established” when a transmission isperformed according to the parameters defined by the predefined airinterface configuration. Thus, the modification instruction allowsnetworks to achieve similar degrees of flexibility while using fewerpredefined air interface configurations, which in turn permits the indexassociated with the selected air interface configuration to be signaledusing fewer bits. This overhead savings outweighs the control signalingoverhead associated with the modification instruction for many networkconfigurations.

In an embodiment, the modification instruction instructs the wirelessdevice to modify a Hybrid Automatic Repeat reQuest (HARQ) retransmissionscheme specified by the predefined air interface configuration. Inanother embodiment, the modification instruction instructs the wirelessdevice to add a HARQ retransmission scheme to, or remove one from, thepredefined air interface configuration. In yet another embodiment, themodification instruction instructs the wireless device to modify awaveform of the predefined air interface configuration. For example, thepredefined air interface configuration may specify using an orthogonalfrequency-division multiplexed (OFDM) waveform, and the modificationinstruction may instruct the wireless device to use a code divisionmultiplexed (CDM) waveform, rather than the OFDM waveform. In yetanother embodiment, the modification instruction instructs the wirelessdevice to modify a physical layer parameter of the predefined airinterface configuration. For example, the modification instruction mayinstruct the wireless device to modify a subcarrier spacing, cyclicprefix (CP) length, symbol duration, and/or transmission time interval(TTI) length associated with the predefined air interface configuration.

Additionally, aspects of this disclosure allow a wireless device toselect a predefined air interface configuration. In one embodiment, thenetwork device sends indices associated with multiple predefined airinterface configurations to a wireless device. The wireless device thenselects one of the predefined air interface configurations, and returnsthe corresponding index to the network device, which promptsestablishment of the selected air interface configuration between thewireless device and a base station in the network.

In some embodiments, the wireless device communicates a modificationinstruction to a network device to request that a modification be madeto an air interface configuration associated with an index. The airinterface configuration may have been selected by the network device, inwhich case the wireless device communicates the modification instructionto the network device after the wireless device receives the index fromthe network device. Alternatively, the air interface configuration mayhave been selected by the wireless device, in which case the wirelessdevice communicates the modification instruction along with the index tothe network device. These and other aspects are explained in greaterdetail below.

FIG. 1 is a diagram of a wireless network 100 for communicating data.The wireless network 100 includes a base station no having a coveragearea 101, a plurality of mobile devices 120, and a backhaul network 130.As shown, the base station no establishes uplink (dashed line) and/ordownlink (dotted line) connections with the mobile devices 120, whichserve to carry data from the mobile devices 120 to the base station noand vice-versa. Data carried over the uplink/downlink connections mayinclude data communicated between the mobile devices 120, as well asdata communicated to/from a remote-end (not shown) by way of thebackhaul network 130. As used herein, the term “base station” refers toany component (or collection of components) configured to providewireless access to a network, such as an evolved NodeB (eNB), amacro-cell, a femtocell, a Wi-Fi access point (AP), or other wirelesslyenabled devices. Base stations may provide wireless access in accordancewith one or more wireless communication protocols, e.g., long termevolution (LTE), LTE advanced (LTE-A), High Speed Packet Access (HSPA),Wi-Fi 802.11a/b/g/n/ac. As used herein, the term “mobile device” refersto any component (or collection of components) capable of establishing awireless connection with a base station. The terms “mobile device,”“user equipment (UE),” and “mobile station (STA)” are usedinterchangeably throughout this disclosure. In some embodiments, thenetwork 100 may comprise various other wireless devices, such as relays.The term wireless device refers to any device that accesses, orfacilitates access to, a wireless network, such as a mobile device,relay station, or smart device. The term network device refers to anydevice that provides, facilitates, or controls access to a wirelessnetwork, such as a base station, scheduler, or central controller. Insome embodiments, a network device communicates directly with a wirelessdevice. In other embodiments, a network device communicates indirectlywith a wireless device, as may occur when a scheduler or centralcontroller communicates with a mobile station via an intermediate basestation.

Embodiments of this disclosure use a modification instruction to modifya parameter of a predefined air interface configuration. Themodification instruction may indicate a modification to one or morephysical layer parameters associated with a predefined air interfaceconfiguration. For example, the modification instruction may indicate amodification to any one, or combination of, a transmission time interval(TTI), a symbol duration, a cyclic prefix (CP) length, and a sub-carrierspacing associated with a predefined air interface configuration.

The modification instruction may indicate a modification to a waveformspecified by a predefined air interface configuration. The predefinedair interface configuration may be associated with any waveform that iscapable of carrying a wireless transmission. The modificationinstruction may indicate that the waveform associated with thepredefined air interface configuration is to be substituted with anyother waveform that is capable of carrying a wireless transmission. Forexample, the modification instruction may indicate switching between anyof the following waveforms: an OFDM waveform, a single carrier frequencydivision multiplexed (SC-FDM) waveform, a filter bank multi-carrier(FBMC) waveform, an interleaved frequency division multiplexed (IFDM)waveform, a CDM waveform, a discrete Fourier transform-spread OFDM(DFT-S-OFDM) waveform, a filtered OFDM (F-OFDM) waveform, and a sparsecode multiple access (SCMA) waveform.

The modification instruction may indicate a modification to an accessscheme associated with a predefined air interface configuration. Forexample, the modification instruction may indicate switching from ascheduling-based access scheme to a grant-free access scheme, or viceversa. The grant-free access scheme may or may not use contention-basedaccess (e.g., listen before talk, etc.). For instance, one grant-freescenario may allow a UE to use dedicated resources without the need forcontention. In another example, the modification instruction mayindicate switching from a scheduling-based access scheme or a grant-freeaccess scheme to a mixed access scheme supporting both scheduling-basedaccess and grant-free access. In such an embodiment, a UE may select oneor both of the scheduling-based and grant-free access schemes totransmit various types of data. In one example, the UE selectsscheduling-based access for long data packet transmissions, andgrant-free access for short data packet transmissions. In anotherexample, the UE transmits data for delay-sensitive applications using agrant-free access scheme, and transmits data for delay-tolerantapplications using a scheduling-based access scheme. In someembodiments, an air interface configuration specifies different accesstechniques for different sets of resources. For example, the airinterface configuration may specify that some resources are accessed viacontention-based grant-free access and other resources are accessed viaa scheduling-based access. The modification instruction may indicate amodification of a re-transmission scheme associated with a predefinedair interface configuration. For example, the modification instructionmay indicate that a parameter of a HARQ re-transmission scheme (e.g., around-trip-time, etc.) is to be modified. Alternatively, themodification instruction may indicate that a HARQ re-transmission schemeis to be added to, or removed from, the subset of parameters associatedwith the predefined air interface configuration.

Embodiments of this disclosure provide methods for using a modificationinstruction and an index to establish a modified air interfaceconfiguration. FIG. 2 is a diagram of an embodiment communicationssequence 200 for establishing an air interface configuration. In thecommunications sequence 200, a network device 210 sends an index 212 anda modification instruction 214 to a wireless device 220. In thisexample, the network device 210 is a base station and the wirelessdevice 220 is a UE. In other examples, the network device 210 may be anetwork controller, and the wireless device 220 may be a base station, arelay, or any other device configured to communicate over an airinterface. The index 212 is associated with a predefined air interfaceconfiguration. The association between the index 212 and the predefinedair interface configuration may be a priori information to the wirelessdevice 220. For example, the wireless device 220 may maintain a look uptable that associates a set of indices with a set of predefined airinterface configurations. The modification instruction 214 indicates amodification to one or more parameters of the predefined air interfaceconfiguration associated with the index 212. After receiving the index212 and the modification instruction 214, the wireless device 220establishes the modified AI 218 without first establishing thepredefined air interface configuration. The index 212 and themodification instruction 214 may be transmitted together in the samecontrol signaling message or separately in different control signalingmessages.

In an embodiment, the modification instruction 214 instructs thewireless device 220 to modify a HARQ retransmission scheme specified bythe predefined air interface configuration. In another embodiment, themodification instruction 214 instructs the wireless device 220 to add,or remove, a HARQ retransmission scheme to, or from, the predefined airinterface configuration associated with the index 212. In yet anotherembodiment, the modification instruction 214 instructs the wirelessdevice 220 to modify a waveform of the predefined air interfaceconfiguration associated with the index 212. For example, the predefinedair interface configuration may specify using an OFDM waveform, and themodification instruction 214 may instruct the wireless device 220 to usea CDM waveform, rather than the OFDM waveform. In yet anotherembodiment, the modification instruction 214 instructs the wirelessdevice 220 to modify a physical layer parameter of the predefined airinterface configuration associated with the index 212. For example, themodification instruction 214 may instruct the wireless device 220 tomodify a subcarrier spacing, CP length, symbol duration, and/or TTIlength associated with the predefined air interface configurationassociated with the index 212.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart of an embodiment method 300 for dynamicallyestablishing an air interface configuration, as might be performed by anetwork device. At step 310, the network device sends an index and amodification instruction to a wireless device. The index is associatedwith one of the candidate air interface configurations predefined by thenetwork, and the modification instruction indicates a modification ofone or more parameters of the predefined air interface configuration.Together, the index and the modification instruction identify a modifiedair interface configuration. At step 320, the network deviceestablishes, or instructs the establishment of, the modified airinterface configuration between the wireless device and a base stationbased on the index and the modification instruction. The modified airinterface configuration is established between the wireless device andthe base station without first establishing the predefined air interfaceconfiguration between the wireless device and the base station.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart of an embodiment method 400 for dynamicallyestablishing an air interface configuration, as might be performed by awireless device. At step 310, the wireless device receives an index anda modification instruction from a network device. At step 320, thewireless device establishes a modified air interface configuration witha base station based on the index and the modification instruction. Thenetwork device that communicates the index and modification instructionmay be the base station or another network device (e.g., a centralcontroller). The modified air interface configuration is establishedbetween the wireless device and the base station without firstestablishing the predefined air interface configuration between thewireless device and the base station.

Embodiments of this disclosure allow a wireless device to select apredefined air interface configuration. FIG. 5 is a diagram of anembodiment communications sequence 500 for establishing an air interfaceconfiguration. In the communications sequence 500, a network device 510sends at least one control message 511 to indicate multiple candidateair interface configurations to a wireless device 520. In this example,the network device 510 is a base station and the wireless device 520 isa UE. In other examples, the network device 510 may be a networkcontroller, and the wireless device 520 may be a base station, a relay,or any other device configured to communicate over an air interface. Inone embodiment, the control message 511 carries a list of informationelements, each of which indicates parameters for a different one of thecandidate air interface configurations. In another embodiment, thecontrol message 511 carries a list of indices associated with a subsetof pre-defined air interface configurations. By way of example, thewireless device 520 may maintain a look up table that associates a setof indices with a set of predefined air interface configurations, andthe list of indices in the control message 511 may include a subset ofindices from the set of indices stored in the look up table. Thewireless device 520 may then select one of the candidate air interfaceconfigurations indicated by the control message 511. Air interfaceconfigurations that are excluded from the control message 511, or thatare associated with indices excluded from the list of indices in thecontrol message 511, may not be available for selection by the wirelessdevice. The wireless device 520 may then communicate an index 512associated with the selected air interface configuration to the networkdevice 510. In some embodiments, the multiple candidate air interfaceconfigurations are a priori information to the wireless device 520, andthe wireless device 520 communicates the index 512 without receiving thecontrol message 511 from the network device 510. For example, themultiple candidate air interface configurations may have been known froma previous session between the wireless device 520 and the networkdevice, or otherwise hard-coded in the memory of the wireless device 520by the manufacturer. After receiving the index 512, the network device510 may establish the selected air interface 518 with the wirelessdevice.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart of an embodiment method 600 for dynamicallyestablishing an air interface configuration, as might be performed by anetwork device. At step 610, the network device sends a control messageindicating multiple candidate air interface configurations to a wirelessdevice. At step 620, the network device receives at least one index fromthe wireless device. In one embodiment, the network device receives asingle index associated with a specific one of the candidate airinterface configurations indicated in the control message. The specificcandidate air interface configuration may have been selected by thewireless device after receiving the control message. In anotherembodiment, the network device receives the indices associated with asubset of candidate air interface configurations indicated in thecontrol message. The indices may be associated with a subset of the airinterface configurations deemed acceptable to, or preferred by, thewireless device. At step 630, the network device establishes, orinstructs the establishment of, a predefined air interface configurationassociated with an index received from the wireless device. The indexmay be the only index received by the wireless device, or one ofmultiple indices received from the wireless device.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart of an embodiment method 700 for dynamicallyestablishing an air interface configuration, as may be performed by awireless device. At step 710, the wireless device receives a controlmessage indicating multiple air interface configurations from a networkdevice. At step 720, the wireless device selects one or more of the airinterface configurations. At step 730, the wireless device sends one ormore indices associated with the one or more selected air interfaceconfigurations to the network device. At step 740, the wireless deviceestablishes an air interface configuration with a base station.

FIG. 8 is a diagram of an embodiment communications sequence 800 forestablishing an air interface configuration. In the communicationssequence 800, a network device 810 sends a control message 811 to awireless device 820. In this example, the network device 810 is a basestation and the wireless device 820 is a UE. In other examples, thenetwork device 810 may be a network controller, and the wireless device820 may be a base station, a relay, or any other device configured tocommunicate over an air interface. In one embodiment, the controlmessage 811 carries a list of information elements, each of whichindicates parameters for a different candidate air interfaceconfiguration. In another embodiment, the control message 811 carries alist of indices associated with a subset of pre-defined air interfaceconfigurations. By way of example, the wireless device 820 may maintaina look up table that associates a set of indices with a set ofpredefined air interface configurations, and the list of indices in thecontrol message 811 may include a subset of indices from the set ofindices stored in the look up table The wireless device 820 may thenselect one of the candidate air interface configurations indicated bythe control message 811, and then send an index 812 associated with theselected air interface configuration and a modification instruction 814to the network device 810. The modification instruction 814 indicates amodification to one or more parameters of the predefined air interfaceconfiguration associated with the index 812. After receiving the index812 and the modification instruction 814, the network device 810establishes the modified air interface configuration 818 without firstestablishing the predefined air interface configuration.

In an embodiment, the modification instruction 814 requests that thenetwork device 810 modify a HARQ retransmission scheme specified by thepredefined air interface configuration associated with the index 812. Inanother embodiment, the modification instruction 814 requests that thenetwork device 810 add, or remove, a HARQ retransmission scheme to, orfrom, the predefined air interface configuration associated with theindex 812. In yet another embodiment, the modification instruction 814requests that the network device 810 modify a waveform of the predefinedair interface configuration associated with the index 812. For example,the predefined air interface configuration may specify using an OFDMwaveform, and the modification instruction 814 may instruct the wirelessdevice 220 to use a CDM waveform, rather than the OFDM waveform. In yetanother embodiment, the modification instruction 814 requests that thenetwork device 810 modify a physical layer parameter of the predefinedair interface configuration associated with the index 812. For example,the modification instruction 814 may requests that the network device810 modify a subcarrier spacing, CP length, symbol duration, and/or TTIlength associated with the predefined air interface configurationassociated with the index 812.

In some embodiments, a wireless device sends an index and a modificationinstruction to a network device to request establishment of a modifiedair interface configuration. FIG. 9 is a flowchart of an embodimentmethod 900 for dynamically establishing an air interface configuration,as might be performed by a network device. At step 910, the networkdevice sends a control message indicating multiple candidate airinterface configurations to a wireless device. At step 920, the networkdevice receives an index and a modification instruction from thewireless device. The index is associated with one of the candidate airinterface configurations indicated in the control message. At step 930,the network device establishes, or instructs the establishment of, amodified air interface configuration based on the index and modificationinstruction received by the wireless device.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart of an embodiment method 1000 for dynamicallyestablishing an air interface configuration, as might be performed by awireless device. At step 1010, the wireless device receives a controlmessage indicating multiple candidate air interface configurations froma network device. At step 1020, the wireless device selects one of theair interface configurations. At step 1030, the wireless devicedetermines modifications for one or more parameters of the selected airinterface configuration. At step 1040, the wireless device sends anindex associated with the selected air interface and a modificationinstruction identifying the modified parameters to the network device.At step 1060, the wireless device establishes the modified air interfaceconfiguration with a base station.

FIG. 11 is a diagram of embodiment control messages 1101-1103 thatinclude signaling to indicate an index associated with a predefined airinterface configuration. The control messages 1102, 1103 further includemodification instructions to instruct the wireless devices receiving thecontrol instructions to modify a parameter of the predefined airinterface configuration. Table 1 identifies the predefined air interfaceconfigurations referenced in FIG. 11.

TABLE 1 Frame TTI Protocol AI index WF Structure Length MA TypeConfiguration 0 WF1 FS1 TTI1 MA2 only PC1 1 WF2 FS2 TTI1 MA1 & PC2 MA2 2WF1 FS3 TTI2 MA1 only PC1

In this example, the control message 1101 instructs a UE (UE1) to use apredefined air interface configuration associated with the index 0. Thecontrol message 1102 instructs a UE (UE2) to modify a multiple access(MA) scheme of a predefined air interface configuration associated withthe index 1. According to Table 2, a first MA type (MA1) and a second MAtype (MA2) are defined by the predefined air interface configurationassociated with the index 1. The modification instruction in the controlmessage 1102 instructs the UE2 to remove the MA1 from the predefined airinterface configuration associated with the index 1. The control message1103 instructs a UE group (UEGroup(3)) to modify a TTI duration and aprotocol configuration of a predefined air interface configurationassociated with the index 2. According to Table 2, a second TTI duration(TTI2) and a first protocol configuration (PC1) are defined by thepredefined air interface configuration associated with the index 2. Themodification instructions in the control message 1103 instruct theUEGroup(3) to modify the predefined air interface configurationassociated with the index 2 by substituting a first TTI duration (TM)for TTI2 and by substituting a second protocol configuration (PC2) forPC1.

In some embodiments, multiple modification instructions for differentUEs and/or UE groups may be included in a single control message, whichmay be multicast or broadcast to the UEs and/or UE groups. FIG. 12 is adiagram of an embodiment control message 1200 that includes signaling tomodify a predefined air interface configuration. In this example, thecontrol message 1200 includes a modification instruction 1204 thatinstructs a UE (UE3) to modify a TTI parameter of a predefined airinterface configuration. The control message 1200 further includes amodification instruction 1205 that instructs a UE group (UEgroup(5)) tomodify a protocol configuration of a predefined air interfaceconfiguration. In some embodiments, the control message 1200 includes anindex to identify the air interface configuration being modified. Inother embodiments, the air interface configuration is a genericconfiguration that is a priori information to the UE4 and UEGroup(5), inwhich case the index may be excluded from the control message 1200.

Control messages may carry information for one or more UEs and/or UEgroups (e.g., UE1, UE group(2), etc.), and may be communicated from anetwork device to one or more wireless devices. In some embodiments, acontrol message implicitly indicates AI parameters by mapping wirelessresources (e.g., a time-frequency block) to the AI parameters (e.g.,subcarrier spacing & TTI length). In some embodiments, a control messageindicates a predefined air interface configuration selected from a setof predefined air interface configurations, as well as modifications forone or more UEs and/or group of UEs.

FIG. 13 is a block diagram of an embodiment processing system 1300 forperforming methods described herein, which may be installed in a hostdevice. As shown, the processing system 1300 includes a processor 1304,a memory 1306, and interfaces 1310-1314, which may (or may not) bearranged as shown in FIG. 13. The processor 1304 may be any component orcollection of components adapted to perform computations and/or otherprocessing related tasks, and the memory 1306 may be any component orcollection of components adapted to store programming and/orinstructions for execution by the processor 1304. In an embodiment, thememory 1306 includes a non-transitory computer readable medium. Theinterfaces 1310, 1312, 1314 may be any component or collection ofcomponents that allow the processing system 1300 to communicate withother devices/components and/or a user. For example, one or more of theinterfaces 131o, 1312, 1314 may be adapted to communicate data, control,or management messages from the processor 1304 to applications installedon the host device and/or a remote device. As another example, one ormore of the interfaces 1310, 1312, 1314 may be adapted to allow a useror user device (e.g., personal computer (PC), etc.) tointeract/communicate with the processing system 1300. The processingsystem 1300 may include additional components not depicted in FIG. 13,such as long term storage (e.g., non-volatile memory, etc.).

In some embodiments, the processing system 1300 is included in a networkdevice that is accessing, or part otherwise of, a telecommunicationsnetwork. In one example, the processing system 1300 is in a network-sidedevice in a wireless or wireline telecommunications network, such as abase station, a relay station, a scheduler, a controller, a gateway, arouter, an applications server, or any other device in thetelecommunications network. In other embodiments, the processing system1300 is in a user-side device accessing a wireless or wirelinetelecommunications network, such as a mobile station, a user equipment(UE), a personal computer (PC), a tablet, a wearable communicationsdevice (e.g., a smartwatch, etc.), or any other device adapted to accessa telecommunications network.

In some embodiments, one or more of the interfaces 1310, 1312, 1314connects the processing system 1300 to a transceiver adapted to transmitand receive signaling over the telecommunications network. FIG. 14 is ablock diagram of a transceiver 1400 adapted to transmit and receivesignaling over a telecommunications network. The transceiver 1400 may beinstalled in a host device. As shown, the transceiver 1400 comprises anetwork-side interface 1402, a coupler 1404, a transmitter 1406, areceiver 1408, a signal processor 1410, and a device-side interface1412. The network-side interface 1402 may include any component orcollection of components adapted to transmit or receive signaling over awireless or wireline telecommunications network. The coupler 1404 mayinclude any component or collection of components adapted to facilitatebi-directional communication over the network-side interface 1402. Thetransmitter 1406 may include any component or collection of components(e.g., up-converter, power amplifier, etc.) adapted to convert abaseband signal into a modulated carrier signal suitable fortransmission over the network-side interface 1402. The receiver 1408 mayinclude any component or collection of components (e.g., down-converter,low noise amplifier, etc.) adapted to convert a carrier signal receivedover the network-side interface 1402 into a baseband signal. The signalprocessor 1410 may include any component or collection of componentsadapted to convert a baseband signal into a data signal suitable forcommunication over the device-side interface(s) 1412, or vice-versa. Thedevice-side interface(s) 1412 may include any component or collection ofcomponents adapted to communicate data-signals between the signalprocessor 1410 and components within the host device (e.g., theprocessing system 1300, local area network (LAN) ports, etc.).

The transceiver 1400 may transmit and receive signaling over any type ofcommunications medium. In some embodiments, the transceiver 1400transmits and receives signaling over a wireless medium. For example,the transceiver 1400 may be a wireless transceiver adapted tocommunicate in accordance with a wireless telecommunications protocol,such as a cellular protocol (e.g., long-term evolution (LTE), etc.), awireless local area network (WLAN) protocol (e.g., Wi-Fi, etc.), or anyother type of wireless protocol (e.g., Bluetooth, near fieldcommunication (NFC), etc.). In such embodiments, the network-sideinterface 1402 comprises one or more antenna/radiating elements. Inother embodiments, the transceiver 1400 transmits and receives signalingover a wireline medium, e.g., twisted-pair cable, coaxial cable, opticalfiber, etc. Specific processing systems and/or transceivers may utilizeall of the components shown, or only a subset of the components, andlevels of integration may vary from device to device.

It should be appreciated that one or more steps of the embodimentmethods provided herein may be performed by corresponding units ormodules. For example, a signal may be transmitted by a transmitting unitor a transmitting module. A signal may be received by a receiving unitor a receiving module. A signal may be processed by a processing unit ora processing module. Other steps may be performed by an establishingand/or a selecting unit/module. The respective units/modules may behardware, software, or a combination thereof. For instance, one or moreof the units/modules may be an integrated circuit, such as fieldprogrammable gate arrays (FPGAs) or application-specific integratedcircuits (ASICs).

Although this invention has been described with reference toillustrative embodiments, this description is not intended to beconstrued in a limiting sense. Various modifications and combinations ofthe illustrative embodiments, as well as other embodiments of theinvention, will be apparent to persons skilled in the art upon referenceto the description. It is therefore intended that the appended claimsencompass any such modifications or embodiments.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method comprising: receiving, by a wirelessdevice from a network device, an index and a modification instruction,the index identifying a radio resource, and the modification instructionindicating a modification of one or more parameters of a radio resourceconfiguration, the radio resource configuration associated with theradio resource identified by the index; and transmitting, by thewireless device, a signal over the radio resource based on the index andthe modification instruction, wherein the radio resource configurationafter the modification is different from the radio resourceconfiguration before the modification.
 2. The method of claim 1, whereinthe modification of the one or more parameters comprises modification ofat least one of a waveform, a cyclic prefix (CP) length, a symbolduration, or a subcarrier spacing of the radio resource configuration.3. The method of claim 2, wherein the modification of the waveformcomprises modification from a first orthogonal frequency-divisionmultiplexed (OFDM) waveform to a second OFDM waveform, and one of thefirst OFDM waveform and the second OFDM waveform is a discrete Fouriertransform-spread OFDM (DFT-S-OFDM) waveform.
 4. The method of claim 1,wherein the modification instruction instructs the wireless device tomodify a physical layer parameter of the radio resource configuration.5. The method of claim 1, wherein a plurality of indexes comprise theindex, and each of the plurality of indexes identifies a different radioresource.
 6. A wireless device comprising: a processor; and anon-transitory computer readable storage medium storing programming forexecution by the processor, the programming including instructions to:receive, from a network device, an index and a modification instruction,the index identifying a radio resource, and the modification instructionindicating a modification of one or more parameters of a radio resourceconfiguration, the radio resource configuration associated with theradio resource identified by the index; and transmit a signal over theradio resource based on the index and the modification instruction,wherein the radio resource configuration after the modification isdifferent from the radio resource configuration before the modification.7. The wireless device of claim 6, wherein the modification of the oneor more parameters comprises modification of at least one of a waveform,a cyclic prefix (CP) length, a symbol duration, or a subcarrier spacingof the radio resource configuration.
 8. The wireless device of claim 7,wherein the modification of the waveform comprises modification from afirst orthogonal frequency-division multiplexed (OFDM) waveform to asecond OFDM waveform, and one of the first OFDM waveform and the secondOFDM waveform is a discrete Fourier transform-spread OFDM (DFT-S-OFDM)waveform.
 9. The wireless device of claim 6, wherein the modificationinstruction instructs the wireless device to modify a physical layerparameter of the radio resource configuration.
 10. The wireless deviceof claim 6, wherein a plurality of indexes comprise the index, and eachof the plurality of indexes identifies a different radio resource.
 11. Amethod comprising: transmitting, by a network device to a wirelessdevice, an index and a modification instruction, the index identifying aradio resource, and the modification instruction indicating amodification of one or more parameters of a radio resourceconfiguration, the radio resource configuration associated with theradio resource identified by the index; and receiving, by the networkdevice, a signal over the radio resource based on the index and themodification instruction, wherein the radio resource configuration afterthe modification is different from the radio resource configurationbefore the modification.
 12. The method of claim 11, wherein themodification of the one or more parameters comprises modification of atleast one of a waveform, a cyclic prefix (CP) length, a symbol duration,or a subcarrier spacing of the radio resource configuration.
 13. Themethod of claim 12, wherein the modification of the waveform comprisesmodification from a first orthogonal frequency-division multiplexed(OFDM) waveform to a second OFDM waveform, and one of the first OFDMwaveform and the second OFDM waveform is a discrete Fouriertransform-spread OFDM (DFT-S-OFDM) waveform.
 14. The method of claim 11,wherein the modification instruction instructs the wireless device tomodify a physical layer parameter of the radio resource configuration.15. The method of claim 11, wherein a plurality of indexes comprise theindex, and each of the plurality of indexes identifies a different radioresource.
 16. A network device comprising: a processor; and anon-transitory computer readable storage medium storing programming forexecution by the processor, the programming including instructions to:transmit, to a wireless device, an index and a modification instruction,the index identifying a radio resource, and the modification instructionindicating a modification of one or more parameters of a radio resourceconfiguration, the radio resource configuration associated with theradio resource identified by the index; and receive, from the wirelessdevice, a signal over the radio resource based on the index and themodification instruction, wherein the radio resource configuration afterthe modification is different from the radio resource configurationbefore the modification.
 17. The network device of claim 16, wherein themodification of the one or more parameters comprises modification of atleast one of a waveform, a cyclic prefix (CP) length, a symbol duration,or a subcarrier spacing of the radio resource configuration.
 18. Thenetwork device of claim 17, wherein the modification of the waveformcomprises modification from a first orthogonal frequency-divisionmultiplexed (OFDM) waveform to a second OFDM waveform, and one of thefirst OFDM waveform and the second OFDM waveform is a discrete Fouriertransform-spread OFDM (DFT-S-OFDM) waveform.
 19. The network device ofclaim 16, wherein the modification instruction instructs the wirelessdevice to modify a physical layer parameter of the radio resourceconfiguration.
 20. The network device of claim 16, wherein a pluralityof indexes comprise the index, and each of the plurality of indexesidentifies a different radio resource.